1. Field of the Invention
The invention is directed to an oven door, and more specifically to a simplified construction and assembly of an oven door.
2. Description of the Related Art
Ovens and their general construction are well known. Typically, an oven comprises a structural frame defining a baking chamber with an open side, which is closed by an oven door. Generally, ovens in the home appliance industry can be categorized as either a built-in or a stand-alone oven. The built-in ovens are designed to be installed within a kitchen cabinet and, therefore, do not have an outer cabinet or skin attached to the frame. The stand-alone ovens do have a cabinet for aesthetic reasons and typically include a cook top provided as part of the cabinet.
In the home appliance industry, traditional oven door constructions generally comprise multiple components, such as an inner liner, window, intermediate door members or elements, an outer panel, and a handle, all of which are secured to one another by a relatively large number of screws. Self-cleaning ovens, will also include a double pane window in the oven door. Examples of this type of oven door construction and assembly are shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,606,324, 4,390,767, and 3,996,710.
A disadvantage of this type of oven door construction is that each of the oven door elements is connected to each other and there is a large number of screws used, resulting in an undesirably large number of parts to assemble and a relatively complex assembly method. It is desirable to simplify the door construction and its assembly, especially in the home appliance industry where price competition is very great and any reduction in parts numbers or assembly time can result in a competitive advantage.